Mom’s Sham Torte

3 - 4 egg whites (depends on size)

Pinch cream of tartar

1 cup sugar

⅓ tsp. vinegar

1 tsp. vanilla

Set oven at 275 degrees.

In a regular mixing bowl (not a plastic one), beat egg whites very stiff. Add cream of tartar. Then add ½ of sugar. Slowly beat well. Add vinegar—a drop at a time. Add vanilla—a few drops at a time. Fold in remaining ½ cup sugar.

Cover baking sheet with aluminum foil. Drop mixture from spoon. Bake for one hour.

Serve with fruit, ice cream, whipped cream.

Helpful tip: Prior to preparation, put the mixing bowl and beaters in the freezer. Egg whites will beat firmer when beaten in a cold bowl with cold beaters.

Mom’s Apple Crisp

6 - 8 apples, quartered (like Jonathon’s or McIntosh)

½ cup butter or margarine

1 cup sugar

¾ cup flour

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Set oven at 375 degrees.

Place the apples in a buttered dish. (Lightly spray with vegetable oil cooking spray.) In a separate bowl, blend together the remaining ingredients, using a fork, until crumbly. Then pat closely the ingredients over the apples.

Bake in oven for 45 - 60 minutes.

Serve plain, with whipped cream or over ice cream.

Mrs. Dorothy Boyce

Mom recalls: I used to babysit for her when I was 12 or 13 years old. She and her husband were very strict Catholics. They had 4 little girls. The youngest one, Rita, was 9 months old and Dorothy was pregnant with her 5^th child. She needed help caring for Rita. They were a family of brunettes—with the exception of Rita, who was blonde with blue eyes. Dorothy always teased me saying that Rita was my sister!

It was a very busy household. Dorothy was 28 years of age when she had her first child and all the children were a year to year-and-a-half apart. And although I was hired to care for Rita, many days were spent traipsing after the others.

Then along came John, their first son, and a year and a half later, along came Robert. George then came along, but Dorothy was close to 40 then.

I must have worked for them through Robert—about 4 years. We became really good friends. I’ve stayed in touch with her all these years and talk with her on the phone at least once a year and visit her every time we’re in the Dowagiac area.

She’s now 93 years old—very bright and still considers me part of the family. A very neat lady. She, too, was a big influence in my life—especially as a mother and a homemaker.

Snapshot memories…

Old tin and dark red cookie cutters in varying shapes and sizes

Chinese marbles

Dad had a workbench downstairs in the basement. There were always toys down there sitting on the workbench that had to be repaired. One day, Dave broke a toy. “You ought to be more careful with your toys.” “It’s OK mom,” Dave said, “Dad’ll fick it!”

Northern Lights

A rare night out for mom and dad means the older kids must hold down the fort

Brian’s Grizzly Adam’s phase with wild hair and really long side-burns

Playing 52-card pickup with Lori. Direct quote: “You son’s of bitches!”

When Lori was little, Bruce often enjoyed taking her with him on errands; she was a chick magnet!

Piling into “the boat”: a Pontiac Executive Safari Wagon, purchased in ’69. It weighed over 5,000 lbs. and could hold the entire gang!

Clothes drying on a clothesline

Wandering the property at Great Aunt Catherine’s; the boys shooting birds with their BB gun; swimming in the lake; eating expired food from her refrig.; hand-crocheted vests/purses; Aunt Catherine driving her car into the lake

David’s personal solution for anything that’s broke: fix it with duct tape!

Mom’s Oatmeal Cookies

¾ cup shortening

1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg

1 cup flour

½ tsp. baking soda

1 Tbsp. allspice

1 tsp. vanilla

3 cups oatmeal (uncooked)

¼ cup water

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Combine shortening, brown sugar and egg. Mix until smooth. Add flour, baking soda, allspice and mix. Then add vanilla; thoroughly mix. Then gradually add uncooked oats to the mixture and the water. The mixture will be very thick.

Lightly grease cookie sheet or spray with vegetable oil cooking spray. Then drop by the teaspoon onto the cookie sheet. Bake in oven for 12 - 15 minutes until lightly brown.

Mom’s Mint Chocolate Chip Pie

1 ready-made chocolate flavored graham cracker pie crust

1 quart mint chocolate chip ice cream, softened

¾ cup powdered sugar

1 Tbsp. butter or margarine

3 squares semi-sweet chocolate

½ cup evaporated milk

Fresh mint garnish

Spread softened ice cream into the crust. Freeze 2 hours.

Mom’s Baking Powder Biscuits for Strawberry Shortcake

2 cups flour

4 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. cream of tartar

2 tsp. sugar

½ cup solid shortening (like Crisco)

⅔ cup milk

Set oven at 450 degrees.

Mix flour, baking powder, salt, cream of tartar and sugar. Cut in the shortening—like for pie dough. Gradually add the milk.

Roll out on a floured board. Lightly flour and then cut dough into biscuit rounds.

Bake 10 - 12 minutes until lightly browned. Makes approximately 16 medium-sized biscuits. Serve with strawberries and whipped cream or ice cream. 

Derby Pie

Unbaked 9-inch pie crust

¾ cup chocolate chips

1 stick butter or margarine

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

½ cup flour

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans

Set oven at 325 degrees.

Line bottom of unbaked pie shell with chocolate chips. Melt butter or margarine in microwave. In a mixing bowl, add butter and remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into pie shell.

Wash First…

…then cap the strawberries or you’ll rinse away part of the flavor.

Excerpt from Low Fat, High-Flavor Cookbook, published in 1995, pg. 42.

Past Tense Mode…

Console stereos

Really BIG speakers

Reel to reel video, like the ones we used to see in school

Pay phones

A curfew, they don’t really exist anymore…

Outhouses

Party lines

Roller skate key

Full service gas stations

S&H green stamps

Wooden tennis rackets with small heads

Computer data cards

Drive-In movies

Encyclopedias—you know, the books

Waffles made from a waffle iron, not frozen in a box

Hard contact lenses

“With the Past, as past, I have nothing to do; nor with the Future as future. I live now, and will verify all past history in my own moments.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Journals, 1839

Mom’s Wool Skirts

Mom recalls: When I was in high school and college I wore a lot of wool pleated skirts. Then when you girls came along, I took out the pleats, had the material dry-cleaned and steamed, and turned the material inside out.

Then a seamstress made beautiful wool jumpers and skirts for you girls.

Mom’s Blonde Brownies

2 cups flour

¼ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed

⅔ cup butter or margarine

2 eggs, slightly beaten

2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

⅓ cup chopped nuts, optional

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Mix flour, soda, baking powder, and salt. Melt butter in saucepan; add sugar. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Add flour mixture gradually, mixing well. Then fold in chocolate chips and nuts (optional). Lightly spray 13 x 9-inch pan with vegetable oil cooking spray. Spread mixture into pan.

Bake for 30 minutes. Cool in pan; cut into bars. Makes 48. Do not over-bake. Mom says they’ll get hard as a rock if you do!

This is a family favorite!

Kudrna Version of Blonde Brownies

1½ cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

½ cup butter

½ cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Mom’s Spice Cake

3 cups sifted flour

1½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1½ tsp. cinnamon

¾ tsp. nutmeg

¾ tsp. ground cloves

¾ cup vegetable oil

1½ cups milk or buttermilk

3 eggs

1¼ cups light brown sugar, firmly packed

1 cup sugar

Set oven at 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Add the vegetable oil and milk. Beat several minutes on medium speed until the mixture becomes a very smooth batter.

In a separate bowl, beat the eggs until they are thick and foamy. Gradually add the sugars and beat until very well blended.

By hand, fold the egg-sugar mixture into the flour mixture. Grease a 13 x 9-inch pan and pour in the batter.

Bake for 35 – 40 minutes. Cool.

Note: The Duncan Hines Spice Cake mix is excellent and can be used to save time!

Caramel Butter Frosting:

½ cup butter

1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

¼ cup milk

3¼ cups powdered sugar

Melt butter; add brown sugar. Bring to a boil; stir 1 minute or until slightly thick. Cool butter/sugar mixture slightly. Add milk; beat smooth. Beat in powdered sugar until of spreading consistency. Makes enough to frost the above Spice Cake recipe.

“Variety’s the very spice of life that gives it all its flavour.”

     William Cowper

Mom and Dad-speak…

“I’m so mad I could spit nails.”

“She really had a tizzy fit.”

“OK. We gotta bale.”

“Knock it off!” (quit fighting)

“You don’t have to have a conniption.”

Expletive: “Oh, Cheese and Crackers!”

“If you can’t fight ‘em, join ‘em.”

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do…”

“You ready to mosey?” (to leave)

“Put a little pizzazz in it!” “You gotta hit it, you wimp!” And, “Is it high enough?” (Golfing with Grandpa, Greg and Kurt)

Expletive: “Holy Hell!” Immediately followed by “Pardon my French!” (Dad, that don’t sound French to me!)

Mom and Dad-speak…

Tired, out of it = zonked

“Bright eyed and bushy-tailed.”

Expletive: “Oh, shavens!”

“What’s all the raucous?”

“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

“He’s a real lost ball in the high weeds.”

Dad’s term for a small plane = a puddle jumper

A lot of something, like Tylenol = a stash

“A gadfly” or “gadabout.” Someone who moves around a lot, flitting about

Shenanigans

“What a riot!” (something that’s very funny)

“It’ll cost you an arm and a leg.”

Money = moola

“So, what’s the damage?” Meaning, what’s the total bill.

Instead of take you to the doctor, it was, “cart you off” to the doctor.

“A boat load.” A lot of something.

“I slept like a log last night.”

Hat = lid

Mom’s Dark Chocolate
Birthday Cake

This was Brian’s favorite cake as a child.

1¾ cups flour

2 cups sugar

¾ cup cocoa

1½ tsp. baking soda

1½ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 eggs

1 cup milk

½ cup vegetable oil

2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup boiling water

Set oven at 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Then add eggs, milk, vegetable oil and vanilla. Beat at medium speed 2 minutes. Remove from mixer; stir in boiling water (batter will be thin).

Pour into two greased 9-inch pans. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean. (Use a toothpick.) Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely.

Note: The Duncan Hines Devil’s Food Cake mix is excellent and can be used to save time.

Butter Cream Frosting:

6 Tbsp. butter or margarine

¾ cup cocoa

2⅔ cups powdered sugar

⅓ cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

Mom’s Chocolate Brownies

¾ cup flour

¾ cup sugar

¼ tsp. salt

¼ cup cocoa

½ cup softened shortening, not melted

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

½ cup chopped walnuts, optional

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Combine flour, sugar, salt and cocoa. Add softened shortening, unbeaten eggs and vanilla.

Beat at medium speed for three minutes. Add nuts (optional). Turn batter into a greased eight-inch square pan. Bake for about 15 – 18 minutes.

Note: This is one recipe you may definitely want to double. (It’ll take longer to cook, if you do.)

Kudrna Chewy Brownies

½ cup butter or margarine

3 squares unsweetened chocolate

3 eggs

1½ cups sugar

1½ tsp. vanilla

1 cup flour

¾ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Melt butter and chocolate in microwave or on stove; set aside. In a bowl, beat eggs until fluffy. Gradually add sugar to eggs. Beat until thick. Then add butter/chocolate mixture and the vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add to rest of ingredients. Mix well.

“Lil’ ‘sis”

Growing up the oldest of three brothers has had its advantages. With one brother a year younger and one ten years younger, I had one that I could do things with (from playing baseball to fighting) and one that I could help take care of while he was a baby. The one thing that you miss having all brothers is not having a little sister.

After all, there was the practical side of things. In a family with all boys, we did both the yard work AND the housework. All the time I spent cleaning the kitchen, I couldn’t help but think, “If I only had a little sister, SHE could clean, vacuum and do the laundry!” (I have since lost my youthful chauvinism.)

As I hit my twenties, I also realized that I had missed out on the other fun of having a little sister: letting her tag along on errands; making fun of her varying hairstyles; harassing her dates! So much that I could have done, but wasted on brothers!

But then I met Karin Marie. The second time that Karin and I got together was when I met La. I was involved in a Friday night bowling league with several friends at Pro Bowl III. Karin said she would stop by some time that evening and might bring her little sister with her. I remember looking up as Karin came through the door with this smiling young lady behind her. I can still remember how Karin introduced Lori to the group of guys that were there. “Everyone, this is my sister Lori.” Slight pause. “My 15 year old sister Lori!” Lori was almost as tall as Karin was, attractive and smiling. Most of my single friends were

disappointed to find out that La—you—were only 15, to say the least. All except for Brad, that is. Go figure.

As Karin and I spent more time together, I finally found what I’d been missing growing up: a little sister! Over the years, I’ve had the chance to watch you grow up from the gregarious 15-year old to a talented, successful young woman.

We’ve gotten to do all manner of brother and sister kinds of things. I’ve moved you many, many, MANY times! I’ve had the joy of threatening your boyfriends. You’ve helped me shop for more than one of Karin’s Christmas gifts. You’ve even (gasp) asked my advice on a number of issues over the years and I’ve always give you the best advice an older brother can. Sometimes it was even GOOD advice!

I know for you, having big brothers is a way of life. You had three growing up, after all. But for me, having a little sister is priceless. So, no mater how old you get, you will always be my LITTLE sister. Things do change. The bowling alley where we first met is now the East End Government Center and they keep track of voting records instead of how many strikes you have. You’ve changed as well, Lori. It’s hard to think of you as a married {past tense mode} working woman of third decade numbers. It’s hard to imagine you driving. (I bet it’s freezing in Hell these days.) But, in my mind’s eye, you’re still 15 and I’m 22: a big brother with a lil’ ‘sis. Just remember, Lori. Respect your elders!

Love, Tony

January 22, 2000

Mom’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

½ cup shortening

½ cup sugar

¼ cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup flour

¾ tsp. salt

½ tsp. baking soda

1 6-ounce package
(1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate pieces

½ cup walnuts, chopped, optional

Set oven at 375 degrees.

Cream together shortening, sugars, egg, and vanilla ‘til light and fluffy. Then add dry ingredients; stir into creamed mixture, blending well. Add chocolate pieces and nuts (optional).

Drop by the teaspoon onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes. Remove from pan immediately. Makes about 3½ dozen cookies.

These are, of course, a family favorite!

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Drops

2 egg whites (should be at room temperature)

⅛ tsp. cream of tartar

½ cup sugar

½ cup mini chocolate chips

¼ cup finely crushed hard peppermint candies

Set oven at 250 degrees.

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside. Then combine egg white and cream of tartar. Beat at high speed until soft peaks form. Add sugar, 1 teaspoon at a time, while beating. Fold in chips and candies. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto cookie sheets.

Mom’s Peanut Butter Cookies

½ cup shortening or butter

½ cup smooth peanut butter

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg

1¼ cups flour

¾ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. baking powder

In a mixing bowl, beat shortening (or butter), peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar, and egg together. Then add flour and baking soda and beat ‘til well combined. Cover and then chill dough in refrigerator for a minimum of 3 hours.

Set oven at 375 degrees.

Shape chilled dough into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten with a fork, first going one way, then the other. (Like tic-tac-toe.)

Bake for 10 – 12 minutes. Cool about 1 minute before removing to a wire rack. Makes 48 cookies.

Kahlua-Flavored Ice Cream

½ gallon French Vanilla ice cream

5 ounces Kahlua

3 ounces Crème de Cacao

Soften ice cream; beat in liqueurs. Store in freezer.

Note: Because of the liqueurs, the ice cream will not completely harden. (So don’t let that worry you.)

Shows that we watched…

Leave it to Beaver

The Danny Thomas Show

Gidget

The Mary Tyler Moore Show

Gunsmoke

Fantasy Island

The Love Boat

Lawrence Welk

Emergency

Prisoner Cell Block H: Debbie’s room, 11:30 at night. Sometimes Lori couldn’t sleep or needed a glass of water. So, she’d meander down to Debbie’s room (the dining room) and watch late night T.V. with her

Perry Mason

Dick Van Dyke Show

Captain Kangaroo and his ping-pong balls

The Price Is Right

All in the Family—but we really weren’t allowed to watch it that often

Let’s Make a Deal!

General Hospital

Password (a game show) with Alan Ludden

“Hey, Hey, Hey! It’s FAAAAAT Albert!” Watching Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids on Saturday mornings

Get Smart

Life’s many paths…

“We can’t become who we are going to be by staying who we are.” --Oprah

“I’m working on becoming someone I will never quite finish.” --Josie Natori

“Just because I’m wandering doesn’t mean I’m lost.”
Author Unknown

“We all take different paths in life, but no matter where we go we take a little of each other everywhere.”

--Tim McGraw

Brianisms

What’s for dinner? “Food!”

What kind of food? “Good food!”

I have a question. “No questions allowed!”

Umm… “No um’s allowed!”

Jeaneane’s Choco-Chunk and Butterscotch Cookies

¼ cup butter

¾ cup shortening (like Crisco)

½ cup sugar

¾ cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 12-ounce bag of Choco-chunks

½ bag of butterscotch chips

Set oven at 325 degrees.

Cream together butter, shortening, sugars, egg, and vanilla ‘til light and fluffy. Then add dry ingredients; stir into creamed mixture, blending well. Add Choco-chunks and butterscotch chips. Mix well.

Drop by the teaspoon onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes, or until light and fluffy and golden brown. Remove from pan immediately. Makes about 3½ dozen cookies.

Sandy’s Chocolate Chip Cake

1 cup chocolate chips

½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed

½ cup sugar

¼ cup flour

1 box Butter Cake Mix

Mix together chocolate chips, sugars and flour to make the sugar/chocolate chip topping.

Fried Fruit Pies

For pastry:

2 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

⅔ cup vegetable shortening (Crisco)

10 – 12 Tbsp. ice water

For cherry pie filling:

1 16-ounce can red tart cherries

¾ cup sugar

1½ Tbsp. cornstarch

1½ Tbsp. water

2 Tbsp. butter

¼ tsp. almond extract

To fry:

2 cups vegetable oil for frying

For pastry:

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt; stir. Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening until pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle ice water, a couple of tablespoons at a time, over the mixture. Cut that in as you did the shortening with a pastry blender. Work enough water into the flour mixture to form a ball.

Set aside for 30 minutes. When ready to roll out, dust your flat surface area with flour. Roll half of the dough at one time to about ⅛-inch thickness.

Cut the dough into 6-inch rounds. (Use a saucer or plate as your guide.) Then place 3 tablespoons of filling on one side of the round. Dampen the edges of the round with water, and fold over into half-moon shape. Crimp edges with a fork.

For cherry pie filling:

In a saucepan, combine cherries and sugar. Mix cornstarch with water. Add to cherry mixture. Cook over medium heat until thickened. Remove from heat. Add butter and almond extract. Stir until well blended.

Recipe continued…

When dad was a child, he fondly remembers his mother making mounds of fried fruit pies in the kitchen and how wonderful they tasted.

This is not her recipe. (She wouldn’t share it with mom.) But, this one is pretty close—according to dad.

Though I barely remember Grandma Owen, I wanted to include this recipe to pay homage to her and to share a little flavor from dad’s childhood with the readers of this book. 

Dad: Secret Agent Man

Snapshot memories…

Euchre tournaments on Friday and Saturday nights

Dad’s favorite paint color: olive green!

Small town breweries

A baby boom of nieces and nephews born in the 80s

Miniature pool

Shelves filled with beloved books, children’s hand-made gifts, picture frames

Grandpa Wendt’s magic card trick: three kings

As kids, sleeping over at Bruce and Linda’s; Linda broiling burgers late at night

Hanging out with Brian and Dave at their apartment on Hancock Street; listening to rock music; trying to understand the lyrics

Watching Saturday Night Live—when it used to REALLY be funny

Mom’s the boss; no doubt about it!

Grilled cheese sandwiches at the Country Kitchen

Dad: balancing the demands of work with supporting his kids; he rarely missed cross-country meets, basketball games, gymnastics, piano recitals, choir concerts

On the passenger side of the car, mom wearing a hole in the carpet with her high heels; she was breaking!

Fried Fruit Pies - continued

To fry:

Heat the vegetable oil in a fry pan (setting at 350 degrees). Oil should be about an inch deep. To test temperature, drop a small piece of crust into the oil. If it begins to cook rapidly, then you know the oil is ready to fry the pies

Drop your pie into the oil and fry it ‘til it’s golden brown and then you turn it over on the other side and fry it ‘til it’s golden brown. Remove the pie from the oil and drain on paper towels.

Optional: Sprinkle a little sugar on them, if you like. But dad says Grandma Owen didn’t do that with hers.

Easy Chocolate Chess Pie

1 9-inch pie shell, unbaked

1½ cups sugar

3 Tbsp. cocoa

¼ cup butter, melted

2 eggs, slightly beaten

⅛ tsp. salt

1 small can evaporated milk (5 ounces)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans, optional

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Prepare unbaked pie shell. (Pillsbury Ready-Made crusts work fine.)

Mix sugar, cocoa and butter. Stir well. Add eggs and beat with electric mixer for 2½ minutes.

Add salt, evaporated milk and vanilla. Stir in pecans, if desired. (I recommend you make the pie with the pecans!) Pour filling into pie shell.

Jeaneane’s Peanut Butter Blossoms

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

2 cups light brown sugar, firmly packed

1½ cups peanut butter

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2½ cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 package Hershey’s kisses

Set oven at 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, brown sugar and peanut butter ‘til well blended. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.

Stir together flour, baking powder and baking soda. Gradually add to peanut butter mixture. Beat well.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar.  Place on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 8 – 10 minutes—or until cookies are just set. Remove from oven.

Working quickly, twist a Hershey’s kiss into the center of each cookie, pressing down so that cookie cracks around the edges.

Then remove from cookie sheet to a wire rack. Cool completely.

Makes about 8 dozen cookies.

I am Funny and Happy!

I am funny and happy

I wonder how teachers can stand kids

I hear the sounds of skateboarders

I see people fall

I want to be the best

I am funny and happy

I pretend I’m smart

I feel excited always

I touch the clouds while skateboarding

I worry to break a bone

I cry when I die

I am funny and happy

I understand the world

I say I try hard

I dream to be the best skateboarder

I try at school

I hope to be successful

I am funny and happy

By Trevor Owen

Funky clothes that we wore…

Wrap around skirts

V-neck sweaters, especially velour ones

Painter pants

Culottes

Flip flops

Mini skirts

Corduroys (“cords”)

Halter tops

Any jewelry with turquoise

Prairie skirts

Wind-breakers

Ponchos

Calf-high tube socks

Earth shoes

Jumper dresses, snapped or buttoned at the shoulders

Topsiders

Argyle socks

Dr. Scholl’s

High-topped sneakers

Jeans and T-Shirts

3-pce polyester nylon suits (think Debbie and a baby-blue colored suit)

La’s white butterfly T-shirt; she wore it so much the butterfly fell off leaving a big hole in the front! It had matching butterfly shorts

Pleated skirts

Kudrna Mocha Fudge Brownies

½ cup butter or margarine, melted

1 14-ounce can Sweetened Condensed Milk

¼ cup coffee flavored liqueur or 2 tsp. instant coffee dissolved in 1 Tbsp. warm water

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup biscuit baking mix

½ cup cocoa

1 cup chopped nuts, optional

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Mix melted butter, condensed milk, liqueur, eggs, and vanilla together; then add biscuit baking mix and cocoa. Mix well. Add nuts, if desired.

Pour into a well-greased 8 x 8 x 2-inch baking pan. (If doubling the above recipe ingredients, pour into a well-greased 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan.)

Bake for 25 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides.

Once cooled, top with Mocha Frosting.

Mocha Frosting:
2 tsp. instant coffee (decaffeinated)

1 Tbsp. warm water

3 Tbsp. margarine

3 Tbsp. cocoa

1⅓ cups powdered sugar

Dissolve instant coffee in the warm water. Then combine with margarine and cocoa and powdered sugar.

Note: Instead of instant coffee and warm water, 1 Tbsp. of coffee flavored liqueur can also be used.

Once brownies have cooled, frost evenly and serve.

Mom’s Best Two Egg Cake

½ cup shortening (Crisco)

1½ cups sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

2¼ cups flour

2½ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. of milk

Set oven at 375 degrees.

Soften the shortening. Gradually add sugar to the shortening and cream together. Add the vanilla and the eggs—one at a time—and beat well. Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the cream mixture, alternating with milk. Beat after each addition. Bake in 2 9-inch round greased pans. Bake for about 20 - 25 minutes. After it has cooled, remove from pans and top with your favorite frosting.

Creamy Chocolate Frosting:

2 squares unsweetened chocolate

1½ cups powdered sugar

1½ Tbsp. hot water

3 egg yolks

4 Tbsp. butter or margarine

Melt chocolate in a double boiler. Add remaining ingredients and beat ‘til smooth. Makes enough to frost the above cake.

Snapshot Memories…

Grandma and Grandpa Wendt’s drooling bull dog

Collecting cartoon-character glasses from the grocery store like Daffy Duck, Pepé le Pew, Tweety Bird and The Road Runner

The boys playing chess

Hallway wall covered with kid’s framed school pictures

Root beer floats and ice cream cones at the A&W Drive-In

Debbie playing softball, field hockey, basketball; seems like she always had a black eye

Traveling with four kids in the station wagon from WI to TX; getting lost on some back woods country road; the older kids throwing a football at the Cotton Bowl; a water park; a highway system that looked like something out of a Jetson’s cartoon; leaving Lori’s good baby spoon at a restaurant (boy, was mom peeved)

Brian playing bartender on New Year’s Eve

Sofas in the family room and den draped with old sheets and blankets

Grandpa Owen’s paintings

Lori falling asleep downstairs on Saturday nights and dad carrying her up to bed

Dave’s shoe box-size room with his stereo, album collection and headphones the size of large earmuffs

Dad’s ships—in particular, the one he painted as a young child

Snapshot Memories…

The World’s Fair in Knoxville, TN during the early 80’s

Mom misplacing her reading glasses…on her head!

Debbie stirring Lori’s ice cream when she was little, mixing the Hershey’s chocolate sauce into it

Going with dad to the local hardware store on Saturday mornings

Aunt Marjorie’s hooked rugs

David knocking Lori’s half-eaten apple out of her hand and under the couch; Lori retrieving the apple and continuing to eat it!

Old wooden windmills

Bruce forcing Dave to push his dirty underwear down the hall with his nose!

  Pink bedroom walls

    Old ‘45s played over and over

Wrapped in our blankets, peering out at the stars from our bedroom windows late at night

Hardwood floors, waxed and slippery; braided rugs

Rock gardens

Homemade birthday cakes topped with burning candles; all birthdays are special

Dave’s first car (a Volvo) with two different color side-door panels. Lori jumping in the back seat and in the ashtray finding an illegal substance!

Mom Kudrna’s Lemon Bars

1 cup butter

2 cups flour

½ cup sugar

4 eggs

2 cups sugar

4 Tbsp. flour

½ tsp. salt

6 Tbsp. lemon juice (about 2 lemons)

Powdered sugar

Set oven at 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine butter, flour and sugar; mix until crumbly. Press onto bottom of lightly greased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

Bake 12 – 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, flour, salt and lemon juice. Mix well.

Spread over baked crust and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool and then cut into bars. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Makes 2 – 3 dozen bars.

Ginger Cookies

2¼ cups flour

2 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

¾ cup (1½ sticks) butter, softened

1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

1 large egg

¼ cup molasses

Sugar (for coating cookie dough before baking)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place rack in center.

Line 2 baking sheets with aluminum foil—spray lightly with vegetable-oil cooking spray. Set aside.

In a medium size bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and ginger. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar with a mixer on high speed until light and fluffy—about one minute. With mixer on medium speed, beat in the egg and molasses. Then increase the speed to high again and beat about 1 minute longer. Thoroughly mix in the flour mixture on low speed. The batter will be rather stiff.

Place some granulated sugar on a small plate or saucer. Use a heaping spoon of dough, roll into a ball with your hands and then roll in the sugar. Place sugared dough balls onto baking sheet, spacing them evenly. (The dough ball will spread during baking.)

Dampen your fingers with water and press down lightly on each cookie to flatten it a little and dampen the top.

Bake for 8 – 10 minutes, or until the cookies have spread and are firm to the touch. Rotate the baking sheet 180 degrees halfway through the baking time. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet.

The story of Marilyn, as written by dad:

Born in Chicago, IL in 1929 the oldest of four children born to Fred and Laura Wendt. Moved to a farm in Michigan when she was about 3. She was not a typical farm girl since she did not like smelly farm animals, working in the fields which could lead to direct contact with snakes and of all the distasteful things you could get dirty. Formal education started at a one room school (White School – Miss Hunter her teacher) near Marcellus, Michigan. She was Miss Hunter’s darling and she loved her. Moved into city (town) of Dowagiac on Hamilton Street when in third grade and attended Oak Street School. Mrs. Moline was her teacher and a real bitty. Little Marilyn was just another student and no longer a teacher’s pet. Third grade was no fun. However, in fourth grade, Miss White was the teacher and an urchin boy named Fred Owen was one of her classmates. Neither paid much attention to each other, but both adored Miss White. Her best friend was Marilyn McKenzie. Interesting enough, they were born on the same day. Two other Marilyn’s were in the class. Marilyn Burkey and Marilyn Smith. Other good friends were Dorothy Hoyt, Mary Ellen Casey and Carlene Johnson. Stayed at Oak Street through the sixth grade. Miss Dyer was the teacher for both the 5^th and 6^th grades. A hard-nosed Hawkeye, but a good teacher.

Attending Central Junior High (7^th and 8^th grades) at a larger school added more friends: Doris Spivey, Nancy Shaul, Valerie Polk, Gwen Gronner. Note, no boys names were included—particularly Fred Owen’s, since both were retarded when it came to the opposite sex. However, at some point,

each other. She says it started in high school, but who really knows. Her hormones may have become active earlier than she will admit. Teachers included Maude Crawford and Mr. Hoover—both old school teachers in their sixties. Maude was OK. Hoover a tyrant.

High school teachers, included Elizabeth Jones (English/History) and Bill Carey (Geometry). Bill liked girls. Marilyn received A’s—since she sat in the front row with low cut blouses and short skirts. She always has been a show off with no inhibitions. By the way, that urchin boy Fred also pulled down A’s in that class, but he had to earn them the old-fashioned way.

Marilyn was an excellent dancer and certainly one of the best in our entire school. She loved the Jitterbug. (I think it would be nice if we had a swing CD or tape with Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood.” It was a great dance tune. To top it off, it would be nice if someone could dance the Jitterbug with mom. And for nostalgia’s sake, it would also be nice if we had Harry James’ rendition (or anyone’s) of “Stardust”—written by Hoagy Carmichael. Stardust was traditionally the last song played at high school dances and at teen dance halls. I could even dance that one with mom, since it is slow.)

Marilyn was a very good student and graduated 7^th in our class of about 100. Obviously, not all grades came easy since we had only one Bill Carey. Don’t ask where urchin Fred stood.

Jeaneane’s Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

2¼ cups flour

⅔ cup cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1⅓ cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

⅔ cup brown sugar, firmly packed

2 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

1 10-ounce package of chocolate or white chocolate Toll House Treasures baking pieces (these are larger than the regular chocolate chip)

Set oven at 350 degrees.

In a bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking soda; set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla ‘til creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Gradually add flour mixture. Stir in chips (baking pieces).

Drop by rounded teaspoon onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 9 – 10 minutes. Allow to stand 2 minutes before removing from cookie sheets. Cool completely. Makes about 2½ dozen cookies.

Linda’s Pecan Pie

3 eggs, slightly beaten

⅔ cup sugar

Dash of salt

1 cup dark corn syrup

⅓ cup butter, melted

1 cup pecan halves

1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust

Set oven at 375 degrees.

Mom’s Date Bars

½ cup flour

½ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

1½ cups dates, cut up and pitted

1 cup walnuts, walnuts

2 eggs

1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

¼ cup vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla

Powdered sugar

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Combine with dates and nuts. Set aside.

Beat eggs. Add sugar and beat well. Mix in oil and vanilla. Stir in the flour and date mixture. Mix thoroughly.

Spread evenly in greased and floured 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes.

When slightly cool, cut into bars and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Makes about 3 dozen bars.

earn money to pursue nurses training. In the fall, she initiated that career by starting out as a nurse’s aid at Borgess Hospital in Kalamazoo, MI. Since there was not financial help from home, it was another way to earn money as well as learn the grunt work of a hospital.

Unfortunately, this didn’t work out—due to heavy work required (for a little person), but the biggest problem was shortage of money. She then pursued her second love and attended County Normal for one year to become a country schoolteacher.

One of her first practice teacher assignments was at White School with Miss Hunter. This was an enjoyable reunion for Miss Hunter and her former elementary pupil and mom was the only former student to come back in a practice teacher capacity. Along the way, mom attended summer school at Western Michigan University to build credits for teach accreditation.

Dating

We started dating in January of 1947. We both began dating someone else in the fall of 1946. Mom with Ed Schenk, my close friend, and I with Valerie Polk, a close friend of mom’s. We went out as a foursome, but it didn’t work out for any of us. Mom and I, however, were hot for each other and as indicated, started dating in January.

A first run movie and each of two fountain cokes at the drugstore set me back a whopping $1.00. Your mom was a cheap date. We had little time to ourselves when we returned to Marilyn’s home, since her parents (particularly her father) monopolized all conversations and I quickly learned what a great guy he was. (In his words.) He was not popular in my book, since he kept me from putting my hands on his daughter. I gave mom my class ring in March and we were officially “going steady.”

We went to various teen dance halls with other couples and attended the Junior Prom in May. After the prom, four couples drove to Lake Michigan, since the girls wanted to walk on the beach in their formals and see the sun come up over the lake. We boys were too naïve to realize the late night beach had other possibilities and we failed to capitalize on them. Ah, young love of the innocents.

We went separate ways in the fall of 1947 with me to South Bend to the College of Commerce and mom to Kalamazoo to Borgess Hospital as a nurse’s aid. We didn’t see each other for several weeks at a time, but wrote every day.

Mom’s Cream Puffs

½ cup water

¼ cup shortening

½ cup flour

¼ tsp. salt

2 eggs

Set oven at 425 degrees.

In a saucepan, bring water and shortening to a boil. Now turn heat down to low. Add flour and salt all at once. Beat fast with a wooden spoon ‘til mixture leaves side of pan and forms a stiff ball of dough.

Remove from heat. Break 1 egg into mixture. Beat hard until batter is shiny smooth. Add second egg and beat again until smooth.

Spoon 2 inches apart onto a cookie sheet. Bake on middle shelf in hot oven until puffed and golden brown—about 25 minutes. Makes 12 big or 18 small puffs.

Cream Filling for Cream Puffs:

⅔ cup sugar

5 Tbsp. flour

¼ tsp. salt

2 cups milk

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

Powdered sugar for garnish

In a saucepan, combine sugar, flour and salt. Slowly pour in 2 cups milk. Place over low heat. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute.

Beat eggs together and then stir them into the hot mixture. Stirring constantly, bring just to boiling point over low heat. Remove from the burner, cover and cool. Add 1 tsp. vanilla to cooled filling. Mix.

Crescent Strawberry Shortcake

3 Tbsp. sugar

3 tsp. cornstarch

½ cup fresh strawberries, sliced

½ cup water

2 Tbsp. orange-flavored liqueur or orange juice

2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced

1 8-ounce can Pillsbury Refrigerated Quick Crescent Dinner Rolls or 4 already-made crescent dinner rolls

1 egg white, slightly beaten

Sugar

Whipped cream or topping

In small saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. In blender or food processor, combine ½ cup straw-berries and water. Purée mixture until smooth. Add to mixture in saucepan. Cook over medium heat until thickened, stirring constantly. Stir in liqueur or orange juice; cool slightly. Stir in 2 cups sliced strawberries; refrigerate until serving time.

If making Pillsbury Crescent Dinner Rolls:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheet. Separate dough into 8 triangles. Place 2 triangles together, one on top of the other; press all edges together to seal. Roll up, starting at shortest side of triangle and rolling to opposite point. Place point side down on prepared cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining triangles. Brush each with egg white; sprinkle evenly with sugar. Bake for 20 – 30 minutes, or until rolls are golden brown. Cool slightly.

Split rolls lengthwise. Fill each with ¼ of the strawberries and a layer of whipped cream. Add the top layer of the roll and put a dollop of strawberries and whipped cream on top.

Note: Sometimes 2 cups of strawberries isn’t quite enough for this shortcake. Be sure to have a little extra, just in case.

Courtship

Mom finished Normal School in May of 1949 and started teaching in a two room school in Sawyer, Michigan in the fall of 1949. I finished two years at the College of Commerce in February of 1949. Getting together during that period was difficult without a car and required a combination of buses and trains, which was an adventure. I started a job with the Singer Company in South Bend in late February 1949 and saved enough money by August to buy her an engagement ring. She gratefully accepted since I had become increasingly more handsome and was now rich with my $52 a week job at Singer. Well, she was kind of a doll herself. I purchased a car in April of 1949 and our getting together was considerably eased.

Mom’s experience as a teacher was very fulfilling and she reveled in it. She had a natural aptitude and was excellent. She taught in Sawyer for two years, but continued to hear from many of her former students and parents for many years.

Marriage

We were married in August of 1950. It was a small wedding, but very nice. Your mother was gorgeous and we both looked like we were about 15. The maid of honor was Marilyn McKenzie and the best man was Stan Taylor.

Your mother took to marriage like she did teaching. She was always a devoted wife and a terrific mother. She had her rules to keep order, but she loved her children with a passion. She was always there for them.

while cute as a button was a typical trying first child. Brian came along four years later and was bigger, ate like a horse and good-natured. Debbie came three years after that and was born talking. She was a good baby, but was afflicted with club feet and wore casts from six weeks to about a year. Then came Dave 14 months later and the milk man must have been ugly. He didn’t have that prominently beautiful Owen nose. Dave was a good baby, but worrisome since he slept about 23 hours a day. Five years later Karin was born and she was a good baby too, but inherently shy. When she started to talk she said goofy things, which made us think she had been here before. Then five years later, in the twilight of our childbearing years, Laura was born. She, too, was a good baby and spoiled by all of us.

Somehow through all the children, several moves within South Bend between 1950 and 1962, to Sun Prairie in 1965, Madison in 1966, Sun Prairie in 1971, Louisville in 1974, Oldham County in 1985, your mother never missed a beat raising the children while I worked and traveled.

She was slowed, however, almost fatally, in January of 1981 when she contracted bacterial meningitis. After being in a coma for four days, she came out of it with memory and balance impairment. Her memory came back with time, but balance is still a problem for her. Fortunately, she was in good condition having been a jogger for several years. When we moved to Oldham County and she started jogging again, our neighbors referred to her as the “blur” as she jogged by…

Linda’s Texas Sheet Cake

2 sticks margarine

1 cup water

4 Tbsp. cocoa

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

½ tsp. salt

2 eggs

½ cup sour cream

1 tsp. baking soda

Set oven at 400 degrees.

Grease a jellyroll pan and set aside.

In a small saucepan, bring margarine, water, and cocoa to a boil. Pour hot mixture into large mixing bowl and beat well with flour, sugar and salt.

Beat eggs and sour cream together and mix in baking soda. Beat egg mixture into batter and pour into pan.

Bake for 20 minutes and remove from oven. Frost immediately after removing from oven.

Frosting:

1 stick margarine

4 Tbsp. cocoa

7 Tbsp. milk

4 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chopped walnuts

In a small saucepan, bring margarine, cocoa, and milk to a boil; stir well. Pour hot mixture into small mixing bowl; beat well with powdered sugar. Add vanilla and beat. Stir in walnuts. Pour over cake as soon as it comes out of the oven. (Frosting recipe is generous!)

Streusel Top Peach Pie

Piecrust:

Buy one ready-made unbaked piecrust

Or, try your hand at Mom’s or Linda’s made from scratch piecrust—whatever you feel like

Filling:

½ cup powdered sugar

⅓ cup flour

4 cups sliced, peeled peaches or 2 13-ounce cans sliced peaches, well-drained

1 tsp. cinnamon

Topping:

¾ cup flour

½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed

½ tsp. cinnamon

⅓ cup margarine or butter

Set oven at 375 degrees.

Prepare piecrust and place in a 9-inch pie pan.

In a large bowl, combine all filling ingredients until blended. Spoon into pastry-lined pan.

In a medium bowl, blend topping ingredients to form crumbs; sprinkle over fruit mixture.

Bake for 40 – 45 minutes or until topping is golden brown. Makes 8 servings.

Note: One cup fresh blueberries or fresh halved strawberries can be substituted for one cup of peaches.

This recipe is from Amy Loveday and is in my blue notebook.

      An old man
 was planting a sapling peach tree when a young fellow stopped and said, “I don't mean to sound brash, but it takes many years for a small tree to bear fruit. Do you really expect to eat the fruit from this tree?”

Rather than be offended the old man answered, "Probably not, but I've been eating fruit from trees others have planted all my life."

Adapted from a story in “Riches for the Mind and Spirit”

This is a traditional German cookie, which I particularly love because of the combination honey, cocoa and spices.

This is a good cookie for the holidays. As with any dough that has to be rolled out, these cookies are a lot of work—but you’ll not be disappointed. Wait until you smell them baking in the oven!

When you store these cookies, put a layer of waxed paper between them. You may also want to consider refrigerating them. (When I made them for Valentine’s Day, one year, they stuck together. When I tried to remove them, they fell apart. I had an entire container of broken hearts—not quite the gift I wanted to give for Valentine’s Day! But, they tasted so good Tony and I ate them anyway!)

From The Cookie Jar, 1995, pg. 87.

Pricey Spice

It’s no wonder cardamom is one of the world’s three most expensive spices; every pod must be harvested by hand. But a little goes a long way. And it’s so versatile, it’s worth paying extra to get the pungent mix of pepper, lime, camphor, and ginger flavors. The peppery sweet spice adds just the right seasoning to many sweets, breads, wines, and spice blends. (By the way, the other two most expensive spices are vanilla beans and saffron.)

Lebkuchen

1½ cups butter, softened

¾ cup honey

¾ cup sugar

1 egg

2 Tbsp. grated lemon zest

1 tsp. vanilla

4 cups flour

2 Tbsp. cocoa

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground allspice

1 tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. ground ginger

¼ tsp. ground cardamom

¼ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. baking soda

Cream butter, honey, and sugar in a large bowl. Add egg, lemon zest, and vanilla; beat until smooth. In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, ginger, cardamom (make sure it is very finely ground), baking powder and baking soda. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Divide dough into fourths. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill overnight in the refrigerator. (Be prepared: this is thick stuff!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

On a lightly floured surface, use a floured rolling pin to roll out one fourth of dough to ¼-inch thickness. Use a 3½-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut out cookies. Transfer to a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake 8 – 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to a wire rack with waxed paper underneath to cool. Repeat process with remaining dough.

Lemon Icing:

1¼ cups powdered sugar

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. water

Almond Cookies

1 cup butter

½ cup powdered sugar

2 cups flour, sifted 4 times

1 cup chopped almonds

1 tsp. vanilla

Cream butter and sugar. Add flour, ground nuts and vanilla. Make tiny balls in palm of hand and place on cookie sheet, about ½-inch apart. Place in refrigerator for about 1½ hours, or overnight.

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Bake until light brown—about 15 minutes. Drop cookies in powdered sugar and stir around with fork. Don’t put too many in at once and don’t pierce with fork.

Afternoon or Dessert Cookies

5 egg whites

2½ level Tbsp. of cocoa

1 cup + 1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

¾ cup chopped nuts

Set oven at 250 degrees.

Beat the egg whites VERY stiff. Blend the rest of the ingredients.

Use a teaspoon to shape little cookies from the mixture. Place on well-greased cookie sheet and dry SLOWLY, in a very moderate oven, for about 30 minutes. Remove carefully from cookie sheet with spatula.

This is a light and crisp cookie of delicious flavor. (Only in very humid weather it may turn soft.) Excellent not only as a dessert cookie, but also as an afternoon tea cookie and for serving with ice cream, puddings, etc. Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

Favorite 45s Owen Archives

I Wanna Hold Your Hand – the Beatles

Downtown – Petula Clark

Sweet Caroline – Neil Diamond

A Boy Named Sue – Johnny Cash

Dizzy – Tommy Roe

Indiana Wants Me – R. Dean Taylor

Knock 3 Times – Dawn

Hair – The Cowsills

Saturday in the Park – Chicago

Pieces of April – 3 Dog Night

Daydream Believer – The Monkey’s

Love is Blue – Paul Mauriat

The Tears of a Clown – Smokey Robinson & the Miracles

I Think I Love You – The Partridge Family

Sweet Seasons – Carole King

Yesterday Once More – The Carpenters

Beautiful Sunday – Daniel Boone

She’s My Girl – The Turtles

(Last Night) I Didn’t Get to Sleep at All – The 5^th Dimension

Sweet City Woman – Stampeders

What the World Needs Now “Abraham, Martin & John” – Burt Bacharach

Yesterday – Ray Charles

Music we listened to before we went rad’:

The Beatles – Yesterday

Simon and Garfunkel – Bridge Over Troubled Water being an all-time favorite

3 Dog Night – Joy to the World; Old Fashioned Love Song

America - A Horse with No Name

Bread – Who doesn’t know the song “If”?

Neil Diamond

Cat Stevens

Chicago – Saturday in the Park; 25 or
6 to 4; Does Anybody Really Know What Time it is? Colour My World

Little River Band

Don McLean – American Pie “Drove My Chevy to the levy, but the levy was dry…”

Everything from the Sound of Music! (What’s not to love? It’s my favorite!!)

Helen Reddie – I Am Woman!

That Popcorn song

The Spinners – Rubber Band Man

Who sang that song: “Put the lime in the coconut and shake it all up…”?

The Eagles

The Doobie Brothers

James Taylor – everything

Carole King – The Tapestry album is the best!

Mom’s Molasses Krinkles

2½ cups flour

2 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. cloves

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ginger

½ tsp. salt

¾ cup shortening

1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg

4 Tbsp. molasses

Stir together flour, baking soda, spices and salt. Set aside.

Beat shortening for 30 seconds. Add sugar; beat ‘til fluffy. Add egg and molasses; beat well. Add dry ingredients to beaten mixture, beating well.

Cover; chill dough 3 hours or overnight.

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Form into balls the size of hickory nuts. Dip one side in sugar and place on baking sheet.

Bake for 8 – 10 minutes, or until firm. Cool.

Makes 3½ dozen cookies.

Note: This soft molasses cookie is not a Christmas cookie, but it does make a great addition to a holiday cookie platter.

Fudge Marble Pound Cake

1 package Fudge Marble Cake Mix

1 package (4-serving) vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix

4 eggs (or equivalent egg substitute)

1 cup water

⅓ cup vegetable oil

Powdered sugar

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Using vegetable oil cooking spray, lightly grease and then flour two loaf pans.

Set aside cocoa packet from cake mix.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, water, and vegetable oil. Beat at medium speed with electric mixer for 2 minutes.

Measure one-cup batter; place in small bowl. Stir in contents of reserved cocoa packet.

Spoon half the yellow cake batter into each loaf pan. Spoon half the chocolate batter over yellow batter in each pan. Run knife through batters to marble.

Bake for 45 – 50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean.

Cool in pans for 5 minutes. Then loosen and remove from pan.

Once completely cooled, sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar and cut into ½-inch thick slices.

Favorite music of the late 70s, early 80s

From the below list of artists, our taste in music took a dramatic shift—more like a tilt—from the late 60’s/early 70s. How did that happen?!

The Who

Boston

Billy Joel

Genesis – all the albums, inc. the bootlegs!

Kansas – Left Overture, Point of No Return

ELO

Heart

Foreigner’s first album

Fleetwood Mac

Elton John

Styx (come on, their earlier stuff was good!)

Paul McCartney and Wings – what was the album, Venus and Mars? Great!

Led Zeppelin

Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon

Supertramp – Crime of the Century

Dan Fogelberg - Netherlands

Queen

The Moody Blues

Jethro Tull

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band

The Alan Parsons Project

Peter Frampton Live!

Ted Nugent

Emerson, Lake and Palmer

Yes!

Music speaks

What cannot be expressed…

Soothes the mind

And gives it rest…

Heals the heart

And makes it whole

Flows from heaven

To the soul.

Biscotti Tortoni

3 egg whites

¼ cup water

¾ cup sugar

Dash of salt

¼ cup whole blanched almonds

1½ tsp. almond extract

1½ cups heavy cream + ¼ tsp. almond extract

¾ tsp. vanilla

12 candied cherries

In a small bowl, let eggs warm to room temperature (about an hour). In a one-quart saucepan, combine water with sugar until sugar is dissolved; cook over low heat.

Once dissolved, bring to boiling over medium heat. Boil uncovered and without stirring to 236 degrees on a candy thermometer, or until syrup spins a 2-inch thread when dropped from a spoon.

At high speed, beat egg whites with salt just until stiff peaks form. Pour hot syrup in a thin stream over egg whites beating constantly until mixture forms very stiff peaks. Refrigerate, covered, for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place almonds in shallow pan and bake until toasted—about 8 – 10 minutes.

Finely grind almonds in blender, put in a small bowl and add 1½ tsp. almond extract. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat cream, ¼ tsp. almond extract and the vanilla until stiff. Fold into egg white mixture until combined.

Spoon into 12 paper-lined 2½-inch muffin pan cups. Sprinkle with almond mixture, and top with cherry. Cover with foil and freeze until firm (several hours or overnight). Serve right from freezer. Makes 12.

Banana Pudding

1 package (4-serving) vanilla pudding and pie filling

2½ cups milk

1 Tbsp. butter

2 medium bananas, sliced

1 box vanilla wafer cookies

Whipped cream or topping

Line bottom and sides of an 8-inch square or 1½-quart baking dish with vanilla wafers.

Combine pudding mix, milk and butter in saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a full boil. Remove from heat.

Layer slices of banana over vanilla wafers, and then add a layer of pudding. Repeat layers of vanilla wafers, bananas and pudding, ending with pudding.

Chill until firm—about 3 hours.

Serve with whipped cream or topping and garnish with additional banana slices.

Mom’s Homemade Chocolate Pudding

¾ cup sugar

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

¼ tsp. salt

2 squares chocolate (2 ounces)

2 cups milk

2 beaten egg yolks

2 Tbsp. butter

1½ tsp. vanilla

In a saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, salt, chocolate and milk. Stir over medium heat until bubbly and thick. Remove from heat.

Add a portion of the heated mixture to the beaten yolks. When combined, add yolks back to the heated mixture. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir two minutes.

Some People

Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some people move our souls to dance. They awaken us to new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom. Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon. They stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same.

Flavia Weedn

Pudding tip
To keep a “skin” from forming on the top of a pudding mixture while it cools, carefully place a piece of clear plastic wrap or waxed paper directly on the surface of the hot pudding. After the pudding has cooled, remove the wrap or paper and spoon the pudding into dessert dishes.

Excerpt from the Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook, published in 1981, pg. 172.

My Russian Teacher

When I think back on the people that have been influential in my life, Isabella Gotlieb, my Russian teacher in college, is one of them. Isabella was a Russian Jew from the Ukraine. She was a bit of a radical, and though her years behind the Iron Curtain are very sketchy, I do know she briefly wrote for a political newspaper. I think it was in the late 70’s/early 80’s, she and her family immigrated to America.

It would not be easy for them. One day, Isabella’s niece, Anne Gotlieb, a slightly chubby, red-haired and freckle-faced 11-year old, rode her bike up to the local mall (not even a mile away from home) and was never seen again. It’s one of the most documented missing person cases ever—and to this day, remains unsolved.

Everyone here knew of Anne Gotlieb. But, when I signed up to take Russian 101, I didn’t know my teacher would be related to her. Isabella was somewhere in her 50’s. She stood just over 5 feet tall (with heels), had LONG braided red hair, dark sorrowful (yet twinkling) eyes, and a shy smile. She was very motherly and enjoyed interacting with her students.

I think my most treasured memory is the day she became a US citizen. She insisted that we (her students) accompany her to the courthouse for the swearing in ceremony. It was a REALLY big deal, and a very happy day with a big family celebration that followed. I was thrilled to be part of it.

Ukranian Chocolate Nut Torte

Every semester, we’d have these big Russian parties (usually held at one of the “older” adult students houses) where we each had to bring a side dish. (This recipe is one that mom and I made.) These parties were a blast with plenty of dancing (always in the smallest rooms), sing-alongs (Isabella taught us several Russian songs) and lots of vodka! It was a good time enjoyed by all!

¼ pound butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

7 egg yolks and 1 whole egg

½ cup chocolate syrup

1 cup walnuts, finely ground

7 egg whites

2 Tbsp. breadcrumbs

Additional breadcrumbs to line cake pans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter at medium speed with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add sugar with egg yolks, one at a time, and continue beating at low or medium speed after each addition. Then add whole egg, still beating. Add chocolate syrup and ground walnuts, still beating. Continue beating until mixture looks well blended. Remove beaters.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites at high speed until fluffy. Fold into chocolate-nut mixture. Add breadcrumbs and, with rubber spatula, gently fold egg whites with chocolate batter.

Grease two round 9-inch cake pans with butter and sprinkle sides with more breadcrumbs. Pour batter into pans. Bake in preheated for 45 – 50 minutes.

When cake is cooled completely, remove from pans. Split layers in half. Cover each layer with butter-cream icing and place on top of previous layer. Decorate sides and top according to taste. Serves 12.

Linda’s Cherry Pie

Filling:
1 quart sour cherries in juice

1¼ - 1½ cups sugar (use more if you like a sweeter pie)

¼ cup quick-cooking tapioca

¼ tsp. salt

½ tsp. almond extract

Mix the above filling ingredients together and set aside while making the piecrust. This gives the tapioca a chance to soften.

Piecrust:

3 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 cup solid vegetable shortening (chilled shortening works best)

⅔ cup milk with ice cubes

Sugar to sprinkle on top of pie

Set oven at 400 degrees.

Sift flour and salt into a large bowl. Cut shortening into flour with a pastry cutter until shortening is evenly distributed and mixture is course and grainy. Pour a little of the ice milk into the mixture at a time (being careful that ice cubes don’t fall into flour mix) and stir with a fork just to mix. Repeat until all of flour mixture is slightly moistened, and will (barely) hold together when you try to form a ball. Form dough into 2 flattened balls, one a little larger than the other. Do not over-moisten, and stir mixture as little as possible when you’re adding the milk. Once the milk is added, handle the dough as little as possible. Over-mixing and over-handling the dough results in a tough piecrust.

She may dress in silk; she may dress in satin;

She may know the languages Greek and Latin;

She may know fine art, may love and sigh;

But she’s no good if she can’t make pie.

Shows that we watched…

Love American Style

Planet of the Apes

Batman

Dr. Who

The Tomorrow People

The Doris Day Show

Green Acres

Petticoat Junction

Six Sense

The Brady Bunch

The Partridge Family

F. Troop

Hogan’s Heroes

Mission Impossible

Beverly Hillbillies

Bionic Woman

School House Rock

Bewitched

I Dream of Jeanie

Lost in Space

Happy Days

Laverne & Shirley

Charlie’s Angels

Linda’s Cherry Pie - continued

Lightly flour your flat surface and rolling pan. Roll out larger dough ball from the center until crust is fairly thin—dusting your rolling pin, flat surface and the pie crust dough, as necessary, to keep the dough from sticking.

Center pie crust in 10-inch pie pan (I like the Pyrex glass pans) and make sure that the crust is pushed into the bottom of the pan and into the corners. If the crust tears while you’re putting in the pan, patch! (No one will know!) Just try to make a complete seal so that pie juice doesn’t leak under the crust (which makes it hard to get the pie out of the pan).

Repeat process with second, smaller ball of dough, except when crust is rolled out, cut it into strips about 5/8-inch wide (these don’t have to be perfect either).

Pour cherry filling into bottom crust.

Either weave strips across top of pie filling or lay half of strips across pie in each direction; either will give you a lattice-top crust. Cut off edges of crust about ½ inch beyond edge of pie pan; turn edge under and pinch together to form rim of crust. Sprinkle a little sugar across top of pie.

Bake for 45 – 50 minutes, or until crust is lightly browned and filling is bubbly. Cool to room temperature. Be sure to hide pies in a safe place ‘til ready to serve. And beware of pie thieves!

In case there’s any doubt, Linda’s coveted pies are most definitely a family favorite!!

Jeaneane’s Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) margarine or butter

1¼ cup brown sugar, firmly packed

½ cup sugar

2 eggs

2 Tbsp. milk

2 tsp. vanilla

1¾ cup flour

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. cinnamon

2½ cups oatmeal (uncooked)

1 – 2 cups raisins

Set oven at 375 degrees.

Beat together margarine and sugars ‘til creamy. Then add eggs, milk, and vanilla; beat well.

Then combine flour, baking soda and cinnamon mix well. Combine with creamed sugar mixture. Stir in oats and raisins; mix well.

Then drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 9 – 10 minutes until lightly brown.

Cool one minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack.

Makes about 5 dozen.

The Wind

The Wind

Bringing change to the new season

Giving motion and feeling to a cool
 spring night

It touches us and sends our hearts
 in flight

Where the stars hint to us to Wish

For the future to bring life to our dreams

Of Love and laughter and happy notes
 to our themes

The Wind

The messenger of the day

Let it bring vision of a new beginning

As it whispers of mystery and shows us
 the way

To find each other in this life
 worth living

Where in our hearts Love and
 happiness lay

Flowing free to you, my heart I am giving

The Wind

The Wind

Blowing free--giving life to the silence

Bringing Love and Happiness

We are one…In the Wind

By David Owen

My trip to London

This recipe is compliments of Ina Noëlken, a UPSer from Germany. She and I worked on a system project together in New Jersey over the course of 2 years and then met up again for system training in London in ‘98.

While in London, Ina and I went out to dinner with a group of folks. It was an Italian restaurant on a square—but I can’t recall the exact spot now. (Probably drank too much wine!) Anyway, I ordered Tiramisu for dessert, which came highly recommended, and loved it! (Huge surprise!)

Afterwards, we wandered around the city using “the tube” seeing many historic sites and landmarks. It was a blast! But when we returned late to the hotel, I couldn’t sleep. In fact, my head was pounding! Then about 4 a.m., the fire alarm went off—a hideous sound that jarred my aching head.

Totally discombobulated, I groggily (but quickly) put on my glasses, shoes and grabbed my purse (all completely in the dark and in a cramped, unfamiliar hotel room), left the building, and gathered in the pre-dawn street with the other sleepy hotel patrons. Many of the late stragglers had hastily grabbed all their belongings and were dragging heavy suitcases behind them with clothes spilling out everywhere!

After a few minutes (that seemed like hours), we were allowed back into our rooms. Once again, I tried, fitfully, to get at least an hour of shuteye, but to no avail. Sleep was not my friend that night.

Tiramisu

⅓ cup sugar (100 g sugar)

4 – 5 eggs (separate yellow & white)

1 12-ounce package of Mascarpone cheese (500 g)

½ cup cream (⅛ liter)

2 tsp. instant coffee with about 2 cups hot water
  (½ – ¾ liter warm Espresso)

Amaretto liqueur

Brandy liqueur

One or two packages ladyfingers (Biscuit cookies)

Cocoa powder

Whip the sugar with the yellows of the eggs and then mix with the Mascarpone cheese. Set aside.

Whip egg whites together with the cream until it becomes very stiff. (Start with the whites of the eggs only and let the cream run into it while whipping.)

Mix together the sugar/cheese mixture with the egg whites/cream. Set aside.

Mix instant coffee crystals in the hot water. Then add Amaretto, Brandy and cocoa, to taste. (The coffee should taste like strong coffee, but not bitter, and should have a good taste of the alcohol.)

Dip the ladyfinger biscuits into the coffee/liquor mixture (just shortly) and cover the bottom of a glass bowl or casserole dish. Dust with cocoa powder.

Cover this layer with approximately half of the Mascarpone/cream mixture. Then put another layer of ladyfinger biscuit cookies on top (dipping them into the coffee/liquor mixture first). Discard what’s left of the coffee/liquor mixture. On top of that comes the rest of the Mascarpone/cream mixture. Spread evenly.

Put this into the refrigerator and leave it alone for at least a couple of hours (better overnight).

Dust the top with cocoa before serving. Serve it by cutting pieces like a cake.

Mom’s Gingerbread

1 cup flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. ginger

½ tsp. cinnamon

½ cup butter

½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg

⅓ cup molasses

½ cup sour milk

Cool Whip

Maraschino cherry to go on top of each serving

Set oven at 325 degrees.

Grease and lightly flour an 8 x 8-inch square baking pan.

Combine flour, baking soda, ginger and cinnamon; set aside.

In a mixer bowl, beat butter and brown sugar ‘til fluffy. Add egg and molasses; beat one minute.

Add dry ingredients and milk alternately to beaten mixture. Turn into prepared pan.

Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or ‘til firm on top.

Serve warm with Cool Whip and a cherry on each serving. Makes 6 – 8 servings.

Mom and Dad-speak…

When it’s time to leave: “Let’s go. The bus is leaving.”

Exhausted = beat

“That’ll break the bank.”

“Time to hit the hay.”

“I’m all ears.” (I’m listening.)

“It’s a doozy.”

“Operating on steam.”

“Turn into a pumpkin.”

“Burn the candle on both ends.”

“A dickens of a time.”

“Muster up enough energy.”

“Keep it at bay.”

“That’s a bunch of malarkey!”

“Put a lid on it.” Or, “Put a cork in it.”

“I gotta drain my radiator.”

“The greatest thing since sliced bread!”

“Give it the white glove treatment.”

“When it rains it pours.”

“Oh Thit!”